IIFA showcases Lanka
Ruwini JAYAWARDANA
The Indian Film Academy opened its second decade of festivity in
Colombo yesterday.
The three-day Videocon IIFA Weekend is expected to spark massive
media coverage for Sri Lanka as foreign artistes as well as business
giants across the globe will take part, showcasing the country as a
business enterprise, tourist destination as well as an excellent film
location.
Day one of the IIFA weekend began with the IIFA global Press
Conference. Over 400 local and international media from different
institutions took part in the event which unveiled details of the
entertainment in store for the days ahead.
Actors Vivek Oberoi, Dia Mirza, Boman Irani, Riteish Deshmukh,
Jacqueline Fernendez took part in the event along with vocalist Anushka
Manchanda and the IIFA delegates.
Economic Development Deputy Minister Lakshman Yapa Abeywardana said
that Sri Lanka did not get the opportunity to stage grand scale
festivals for nearly three decades. He added that the Government has put
every effort to make IIFA awards a success and see that everything runs
smoothly.
Sri Lankan cricket captain Kumar Sangakkara said that it has been a
challenge to stage IIFA in Sri Lanka.
First up on the entertainment schedule in IIFA’s list was the ‘IIFA
Rocks’ fashion extravaganza which showcased some stunning garments from
Indian designers Manish Malhotra and Vickram Phadnis as well as Sri
Lankan designers Yoland and Kanchana (KT Brown).
The FICCI-IIFA Global Business Forum to be inaugurated by President
Mahinda Rajapaksa will follow today. President Rajapaksa will exchange
views with reputed delegates from the business and entertainment sector
as well as some personalities involved in cricket. The event will take
place at Colombo Hilton.
IIFA workshops on cinema for students and filmmakers also commences
today at the Ceylon Continental. Director R. Balki and actors Anupam
Kher and Jacqueline Fernandez will share their experiences with the
students in session one while the second part of the workshop is aimed
at creating a network between Indian filmmakers and Sri Lankan artistes
and directors.
Mandira Bedi, Chunky Pandey and Javed Jaffrey will host UNICEF’s
‘Cricket for Children’, charity cricket match in the afternoon.
Bollywood stars and Sri Lankan cricketers will play for the project
which funds the IIFA village in the north. The proceedings will also go
towards rehabilitating former child soldiers.
IIFA Bling, the second fashion show featuring designs by Rocky S and
Nandita Mahtani will be in store towards the night. Soon to be launched
theatre production ‘Kingdom of Dreams’ will preview along with a
performance from Hassain Kuwajerwalla, Isha Shravani and Gauhar Khan. |